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Published: February 16th 2009
early night last night - went back to the hotel, and got in the shower with my clothes on so i could wash them (it actually works pretty well, don't mock me, its cheaper than going to the laundromat! thats like 7 bucks a load here, and i only needed a few clean pairs of undies to get me through the next week hahah
anyhow, thought the hotel was gonna be nice adn quiet since its a churchy-type place. however there is no carpet all tiles and marble so when someone breaths it echos through the whole place. not to mention the church bells across the street going off all the time. but earplugs are marvelous things so i slept pretty well after. i also have a tv in my room! what a bonus, so not used to that. so out of 27 channels, two are in english - cnn world, and bbc world. i was also watching ross racing to the airport after rachael in italian. funny to hear the weird voices for them.
anyways got up early this morning just after 7 so i could get a nice full day in venice. beautiful morning, crisp and frosty but sunny with no wind. 15 minute walk to the train station and along th eway i saw a bakery so in i go to get my usual breakfast. well only after a cuolpe of people ahead of me cleared out i realized it wasnt actually a bakery, but a cake shop. but it was too late to duck out so i had a piece of random, unknown cake for breakfast. it was quite good. i balanced it out with a banana i had from the train ride yesterday so it wasn't too bad.
quickly bought my ticket from the machines and off to venice i go!
a quick 20 mins later i'm crossing the causeway that links the city to the mainland. a half hour walk from the train station got me to the other side to Piazza San Marco, the main square. part of it is closed off for construction/restoration, and another part was taken up by a stage set up for Carneval, but it was still huge, and beautiful. San Marco church has been around since the 1500s (or maybe mor ei cant really remember), and it is amazing inside. beautiful art work all the walls, all the domes, staircases, etc etc. the floor is a bit funny though. apparantly they put all the good pilings (the whole city is built on wooden "stilts" to keep it from sinking) are put around the edges so the floor in the middle is totally warped, up and down. its all marblish tiles so its odd. anyways, you can climb up and get out on the balcony over the front with a good view over the square.
oh right carneval. so its venices mardi gras and there were all kidn sof people all dressed up in gowns, old clothes, masks, face painting, wigs, the works. very cool. then there were these signs saying something italian and 3:00 and 6:00. so i make sure i'm in the square at 3 and these three ... dinosaurs (they looked like raptors!), people on stilts inside costumes with huge heads and tails, noises and all marching all over the square. kids squealing (and screaming, they were a little scary!!). so funny.
anyways, what else did i do... went to Doge's Palace. he was the big boss of venice waaaaay back when, and man what a spot. huge buildilng with pillars all around, big courtyard in the center and filled wit hbeautiful artwork, staircases... senate rooms, even a prison. the prison was built a little later behind the palace across a canal. the Bridge of Sighs, where the convicts would take one last look at venice and sigh before going into the big jail. there was even graffiti on the walls of the cells from like 400 years ago.
so the ticket for the palace also included the Correr Museum, so of course i had to make use of it. it was a history of venice museum, not overly interesting but they did have a lot of globes from the 1600s and it was pretty cool to see what shape they all thought newfoundland was. but they had some labels on it like cape race, ferryland, labrador, terra nova... and europe looked pretty accurate. amazing what they could do bakc then without satellites, planes, electronics, computers, etc.
the best part of it was just getting lost. the city is just canals and walkways, so no cars to worry about. narrow alleyways going everywhere. they have signs everywhere pointing to a few big spots (train station, san marco...) but otherwise you just wander until you come upon something interesting. churches everywhere, and PACKED with tourists.
went up in the clock tower in san marco square to get some views over the city. it was great! glad iwasnt up there when the bells went off though, i'd like to keep my hearing. but expenisve - definately the most money i spent in a day yet. but when in venice, do as the venetians...
so instaed of buses (since there are no roads) they have vaporetti - boats, with stops and schedules just like the buses. hopped on one to head out to another island across the way from san marco, san giorgio. to see a church, and get a good view back at venice. turns out the church had a belfry you could ride the elevator up to, so of course i did that and was treated to more great views.
the rialto bridge is one of the 4 that cross the grand canal and its a beauty. shops lining it, people everywhere, beautiful views up and down the canals. i know i am overusing the word beautiful, but hey thats it.
one problem with venice - theres nowhere to sit! there are minimal benches, and they are always full of people since there are a zillion tourists around. in san marco square there are stairs all around but to preserve the historic feel of the city you're not allowed to sit! no eating and sitting, you arent even supposed to hang out without wearing clothes that cover knees and shoulders. not that thats really an issue now, it was nice adn sunny today but still no mor ethan 10 degrees, and much chillier when the sun went down. i did find a nice marble bench in the square that had a free spot but man it was cold on the rear. i thought well maybe i'll go to one of the cafes around th esquare beacues they have all kinds of tables an dcharis set up, and i could get a rest, nurse a drink, and people watch for a while. well its about 6 bucks for the drink, which wouldnt be too bad but the nits like another 15 bucks to sit down!! i nearly died - and quickly scrapped the idea. now my feet ar eon fire, my legs hurt, and i just want to complain. haha
anyhow, went to antoher church, Friari, to see some of Donatellos paintings (i cant think of anything but ninja turtles when i see that name), i even gave a donation and lit a candle. i also blessed myself with holy water from 4 different churches, so i think i'm ok with the big guy today too.
as for food today, when i first got to venice i had a delicous sweet raisin bread roll, tasted a lot like my grandmothers raisin bread actually. for lunch i had a mortadella sandwich and strawberry gelato. for supper i had a mystery deli meat pannini, with lettuce, olives, mystery sauce, cheese.... and a double gelato, this time chocolate and one i oculdnt pronounce but it tasted like vanilla with fudge swirls. why cant someone at home figure out how to make gelato?? god i could live on it.
anyways, i waited until dark just os i could get a taste of nighttime venice, then headed back to the train station to catch a train back to padova. no troubles there, except when i gave the machine a 5 euro bill to pay the 2.90 for the ticket, it only gave me 10 cents back. i was about to flip out (ok ok i was just going to go to the ticket counter but it had a HUGE lineup) whe nout popped another "ticket" which was a 2 euro credit for the trai ncompany. so odd. but best kind since i'll be riding the rails to verona and vicenza tomorrow.
now i'm back at the internet place, same as last night but it is super slow today. hopefully this will post and not get lost. also all the computers must be slow beacuse the guy sitting across from me is huffing, puffing, cursing, mumbling, and practically destroying his keyboard. i'm trying not to make eye contact in case he decides to take his frustrations out on me.
two more nights here in padova, then off to the west coast of italy to see pisa, cinque terre, florence, and whatever else i have time for. can't believe in a week i'll be on my way home. sad times!
until tomorrow....
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Lori
non-member comment
Stunned once again....
Wow jason....you are certainly having an experience of a lifetime!! Even though your poor feet are most likely hurting like hell, I am certain you wouldnt change a thing! Although I do have to say...not allowed to sit on the steps??? I find that really odd...and to have to pay 15 bucks to sit down in a bar?? Oh my.....keep blogging and I will keep reading.....and I am sure you will be happy when you get home! Can't wait to see your pictures! Have a terrific day tomorrow! Lori